Sunday, November 14, 2010

As you’ve heard in the media, we have experienced a tragic number of suicides of teens you were being bullied, particularly young men who were bullied for being gay. In response, I am creating an anthology of comics on the topic of bullying. There will be an introduction specifically referencing this recent series of events, however, this anthology is open for submissions from anyone who was bullied whether it was because of their sexual orientation, race, religion, appearance, socio-economic status, or perhaps the reason wasn’t clear. I’m looking for submissions on topics such as:

For those who were targeted by bullies• your experiences being bullied with the aim of letting others know that they are not alone• your experiences coping with bullies and how they may have impacted your academic performance or other ways bullies negatively impacted your life (Let's let school administrators know this is a problem they should be addressing in their schools)• how you responded to the bully, especially if there was a confrontation• if you’ve run into this former bully as an adult, what happened?• how your life has improved since that time with the aim of letting others know that it does indeed get better• letter to your bully

For People Who Were Once Bullies Themselves:• what was going on in your life that led you to engage in aggressive bullying behaviors• apologies to those whom you bullied

When: The deadline for submission is February 1, 2012

Where: Please send your submissions to Melaina Comics. Electronic submissions are preferred, which can be emailed to MelainaComics@gmail.com. If you need to mail the documents for any reason (I can scan them if you do not have a scanner), please email for snail mail instructions.

Specs: Accepting comics anywhere from 1 to 4 pages in length. Black & white or grayscale. Artwork should be saved as a TIF document at 300 to 600 dpi. Longer submissions and color submissions may be considered for an e-book format for the iPad, but will not be included in the print format. The print format will be 6" x 9", though I recommend creating your art at a larger size in the same scale which can be shrunk down (this creates a better quality image).

A portion of the proceeds will go to The Trevor Project and to Stomp Out Bullying! One free copy will be provided to each person whose work is submitted for the anthology. And know that your story may save someone's life.